SAO PAULO (AP) - A Brazilian hospital says former Hertha Berlin striker Alex Alves has died of multiple organ failure after a bone marrow transplant. He was 37.

The Amaral Carvalho Hospital in the interior Sao Paulo city of Jau said Wednesday that Alex Alves needed the transplant last month because of a rare bone marrow disease.

Alex Alves thrived with Palmeiras and Cruzeiro before moving to Germany in 1999. He spent four years with Hertha, scoring more than 20 goals in nearly 80 matches. The club released a statement lamenting his death.

Alex Alves helped Palmeiras win the 1994 Brazilian league, and later also played for Vasco da Gama and Vitoria.

Local media reported that the speedy Brazilian had struggled financially because of the disease and received help from former teammates in Brazil.